1 of 5

Write now Article Tools

Going to see "300" was an interesting experience and got me all pumped full of questions afterwards. Some might say that the film is "just a movie" but, I think that all movies say a lot about the culture that produces them, even historical films set in a different time and place. Watching "300" raised a lot of questions for me in terms of race, sex and eugenics and how 21st Century Americans feel about each issue.

Race in "300": It Came From the East

The easiest way to see "300" is as the white guys vs. the brown/black guys. The "Greeks", as portrayed on film, are mostly very pale, white skinned people who stand for truth, justice, and the American (Spartan)way. The Persians are either brown skinned or black skinned and represent the evil threat to all that is good and pure. In fact, an implication is made that by marching out to face the Persians, the "300"'s Spartans are putting the purity and chastity of their women folk at risk to the advancing dark-skinned baddies (a threat downplayed by Leonidas when he retorts that the Persians don't know much about Spartan women). The veiled threat of brown/black people against white women seems way, way out touch with the world we live in today and is fascinating since, it's the Persians, not the Spartans, who ethnically look more like America in 2007.

America in the 21st Century is a nation that is browning. Caucasian whites have low birth rates while Hispanics and Asians have high birth rates making the days of a non-Hispanic white majority seriously numbered. Hispanics have passed African Americans as the largest minority in the country and Asian Americans, for their size, represent a very fast growing population segment. America is more diverse, more differently colored than at any time in its history. So, it's interesting to see the movie "300" align itself with the very white, very homogeneous Spartans as opposed to the ethnically diverse Persians.

The ethnic diversity of the Persians, themselves, is a bit troubling. The first three bad Persians we meet in the film are all black Africans. I assume that Zach Snyder, the director, is trying to show us how big and diverse the Persian Empire is by including these African characters in the film. As geographically and historically challenged as Americans are, however, it's questionable that most Americans would know that Ancient Persia is related to today's Iran and then be able to make the leap that these African characters are from conquered peoples. It's just as likely

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about Movie analysis: Race, sex and eugenics in the movie 300?
We want to hear your view. Write now!